Suction cleaner



Feb. 3, 1%2. H. E. HOOVER 2,271,551

SUCTION CLEANER Filed NOV. 28, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR Howard Earl H00 var H00? Z/A/E ATTORN EY Feb. 3, W42. H. E. HOOVER SUCTION CLEANER Filed NOV. 28, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 3, 1942 SUCTION CLEANER Howard Earl Hoover, Glencoe, Ill., assi nor to The Hoover Company, North Canton, Ohio, a

corporation of Ohio I Application November 28, 1938, Serial No. 242,714

24 Claims.

The present invention relates to suction cleaners in general and in particular to new and novel agitating means in a suction cleaner. More particularly the invention comprises an improved suction cleaner rotary agitator which incorporates resiliently mounted brush elements which have greater radial extensions than the rigidbeater elements of the agitator and which are capable of sweeping bare floors. I

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved suction cleaner. It is another object of the invention to provide a new and improved suction cleaner rotary agitator. A furtherobject of the invention is to provide a suction cleaner rotary agitator embodying flexibly mounted brush means which cooperate with the rigid beating means of the agitator. A still further object of the invention is to provide a rotary agitator incorporating brush means which are flexibly mounted within the periphery of the agitator and which have a greater radial extension than the rigid beating means of the agitator so as to make contact with bare floors. Still another object' of the invention is to provide a rotary agitator which requires less power to operate. These and more specific objects will appear upon reading the following specification and claims and upon considering in connection therewith the I attached drawings to which they relate.

Referring now to the drawings in which the same reference characters refer to the same parts throughout:

Figure 1 is a side view of a suctioncleaner embodying the present invention with a section shown through the cleaner casing to illustrate the agitator, its driving means and the suctioncreating means positioned therein;

Figure 2 is a side view of an agitator constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 3 is a partial longitudinal section on the helix of the brush element through the agitator and illustrates the cylindrical body rotatably mounted upon the supporting shaft;

. Figure 4 is a transverse section through a flexible brush element being taken upon the line 44 of Figure 3 I Figure 5 is a section which illustrates the agitator in sweeping relationship to a bare floor;

Figure 6 is a side view of a portion of the brush unit with the rigid back removed and illustrates the individual tufts mounted within the unitary flexible support;

Figure 7 is a section upon the line 'I--'! of'Fig- Figure 8 is a partial longitudinal section through an agitator constructed in accordance with a second preferred embodiment in which the rigid back of the brush unit is of a simplified construction;

Figure 9 is a section through the agitator upon the line 99 of Figure 8.

Agitation and air cleaning cooperate in the modern suction cleaner to effect surface cleaning. The ordinary suction cleaner vibrates and brushes the surface covering to be cleaned to dislodge therefrom the embedded foreign material and then carries that material away from the surface covering to deposit it within a dust receptacle which forms a part of the cleaner. In the suction cleaner constructed in accordance with the present invention, the agitator embodiesrigid positive agitating means which vibrate the surface covering undergoing cleaning and also flexible brushing means which smooth and straighten the pile of the surface covering to improve its appearance. In addition to the functions performed by the usual suction cleaner, the agitator of the present invention is so constructed that the flexible brush elements are capable of sweeping bare floors uncovered by surface coverings without contact therewith by the rigid beating element. This result is obtained by providing flexible brush elements having a greater radial extension than the rigid beating elements and by'mounting those elements flexibly so that they can be deflected when the cleaner is operating upona surface covering in order that that covering will not be displaced beyond the orbit of the rigid beating elements having lesser radii. The flexible mounting of the flexible brush elements results in greater brush life and as these elements must from time to time be replaced this feature is important. A further advantage of the greater effective flexible length of the brush element is that the power necessary to rotate the agitator is decreased. The brush elements having a greater effective length for bending, because of their flexible mountings, deflect more readily upon contact with the surface undergoing cleaning resulting in reduction in the force required to rotate the agitator in its operation. This results in a smaller power demand upon the cleaner driving motor which decreases the heat of that element and also lessens the load upon the power-transmitting belt by which the agitator is connected to the motor, thereby increasing belt life.

In the suction cleaner constructed in accordance with the present invention, a cleaner adapted to clean surface coverings and also bare floors, the suction-creating means are of such strength that the suction created thereby within the cleaner nozzle is capable of lifting the surface covering undergoing cleaning upwardly and into contact with the rotating agitating elements. More particularly the means is sufficiently strong to lift the covering within the orbit of the flexible brush elements and into contact with the rigid beating elements in the normal high speed rotation of the agitator. Obviously, as the flexible brush elements have a greater radial extension than the rigid beater elements, they will contact the surface covering before the rigid beater elements as the covering is lifted by the suction, and unless the suction-creating means is of sufficient strength to lift the covering Within the orbit of the brush element the surface covering will not contact the rigid beating elements. As the brush elements are quite flexible this desired relationship is not difiicult to attain.

Referring again to the drawings and to Figures 1 to '7, inclusive, in particular, as the first preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated; a modern suction cleaner is illustrated and is seen to include a nozzle I having surfacecontacting front and rear lips 2 and 3, respectively. A fan chamber 4 in the main casing is connected to the nozzle I by the air passageway 5 and is formed with an exhaust outlet 6 to which is removably attached, by means I, a dus mail.

Within the fan chamber 4 is a suction-creating fan I mounted upon the lower extremity of the rotatable motor shaft I I which extends downwardly from the interior of motor casing I2 which houses the unshown driving motor, the latter preferably being of the universal type. The lower extremity of the motor shaft II Within the air passageway is formed as a pulley I3 which functions to drive, by the rotation of the motor shaft, the power-transmittl'hg belt I4 connected to agitator I5 positioned within the nozzle I. As in the usual cleaner construction the cleaner body is movably supported by wheels, one of the front wheels being indicated by the reference character I6, and a rear wheel being indicated by the character I'l. Nozzle-heightadjusting means are provided, indicated generally by the reference character I8, by which the rear wheels I1 may be raised or lowered relative to the cleaner body for the purpose of pivoting the machine about the front supporting wheels to accomplish the raising and lowering of the nozzle I in relation to a surface undergoing cleaning. A pivoted handle I9 is also provided that the operator can exert a cleaner-propelling force, as in the usual suction cleaner.

' The agitator mounted within the cleaner nozzle I and constructed in accordance with this first embodiment of the invention is illustrated most clearly in Figures 2 to 7 and is seen to com--' prise a cylindrical body which is closed at each of its ends byan end plate 2I and which is formed centrally with a groove reduced poronto the end of the shaft .and is formed with a peripheral flange which overlaps the end of the lsitator body.

Projecting radially beyond the smooth surface of cylindrical body 20 of the agitatorare helically extending rigid beater bars 28, 28. Each bar 28 extends substantially one-half the length of the agitator, that is, from one end thereof substantially to the centrally located pulley 22,

and the elements are positioned upon opposite sides of the pulley. This relationship insures that each part of the surface covering undergoing cleaning will be contactedby a rigid beater element. Aligned with each beater element 28 is a brush unit which is also helically ext-ending and in effect forms a continuation of the rigid beater element upon the opposite side of the pulley therefrom.

Each brush unit comprises, in this first embodiment of the invention, a helically extending rigid metallic back 30 formed with diverging side walls and a central open topped rectangular sectioned portion. The agitator body 20 is formed with converging walls 3 I, 3| which form a brush unit seat and which carry the diverging side walls of the brush back 30. Manuallyre! movable screws 32, 32 etc. provid'e means by which the brush back is retained in the agitator. The relationship is such that the entire back is positioned within the cylindrical contour of body 20, the rectangular sectioned central portion of the back extending substantially adjacent to the centrally located supporting shaft 23.

An elongated flexible resilient support element 34 is formed with a rectangular cross sectioned base 35 which is substantially enclosed by a metallic sleeve 36 permanently secured, as by welding, in the rectangular cross sectioned central portion of the brush seat 30. At spaced intervals longitudinally of the base 35 of the support 34 relatively thin webs 31 etc. projectoutwardly and each web is formed at its outer extremity with a cup 38- which serves as the seat for a brush tuft '39 secured therein as by cementing or vulcanizing. Aiding in the fixing oI the brush tuft in its seat 38 is a spring band 40 which encloses the seat and exerts a compressing force lilach brush tuft, its seat, and its supporting 'web 31 can be considered to comprise a brush element and all the elements mounted in each brush back together with the brush back can be considered as a brush unit as they are removable from the agitator as a unit and are salable as such. 7

The supporting webs 31 of the flexible resilient support 34 for the agitator brush elements extend radially relative to the axis of rotation of the agitator, which may be considered to be the supporting shaft 23, and are arranged, as is clearly illustrated in Figures 4 and 7, with their greatest length parallel to that shaft and are not helically extending.

The individual webs.3| are preferably made integral with the base 35 of the support 34, and the entire support 34, in a preferred embodiment, is made of rubber which isresilient and flexible. The brush tufts 39 are preferably composed of animal hairs and are flexible and, through being mounted by the flexible webs 31, the effective flexible length of each brush element is the length of the brush tuft plus the length of the resilient web, In the usual brush the effective flexible length of the brush element is the length of the brush tuft only and while such a construction can be used to perform the floor-sweeping function which characterizes .the present invention, the rubber mounting of the brushes is a preferred construction. The effective flexible of the extremity of the rigid beater element is illustrated in dotted lines and is seen to be positioned at a considerable distance thereabove.

The agitator is rotatably mounted within the nozzle l, as previously stated, by the supporting shaft 23 which is carried by the nozzle end Walls and is so positioned that the orbit of the surface-contacting portions of the beater elements 28, 28 extend substantially into the plane of the nozzle lips 2 and 3, although this is'not absolutely essential so long as the orbit does not extend greatly below the plane of the lips. The path described by the extremity of the flexible brush elements, however, passes through the plane of the nozzle lips and contacts a supporting'bare floor, as clearly illustrated in Figure 5. As the rigid bare floor cannot be lifted by the nozzle suction, it is clear that the rotation of theagitator will cause the bare floor to be brushed by the brush elements While the rigid beater elements rotate thereabove and out of contact with the floor.

When the cleaner is used upon surface coverings both the rigid beater elements and the brush elements contact the covering which is lifted by nozzle suction into contact therewith. The covering will also be lifted into contact with the nozzle lips 2 and 3 but the important thing is that the nozzle suction be adequate to lift the covering within the orbit of the flexible brush elements, which will make first contact therewith as it is being lifted, and into the orbit of the rigid beater elements. When-the covering is lifted so that the rigid beater elements make contact therewith the flexible brush elements bend and flex as they brush in contact therewith but do not exert sufficient force to displace the covering outside the orbit of the rigid beaters.

Referring now to Figures 8 and 9, in particular, a second embodiment of the agitator brush unit is illustrated. This embodiment is in all respects similar to that aforedescribedwith the exception that the rigid brush back 30 formed with diverging side Walls is eliminated from the brush unit and instead the agitator body is formed with a brush seat 45 which is integral with it and which is similar in shape to the removable, brush back of the first embodiment. This brush seat is formed with a centrally positioned outwardly facing rectangular sectioned portion within which the removable brush unit seats, the unit in this instance comprising the flexible support 34 of the first embodiment with the tufts 39 carried thereby, as before, but with a simplified back comprising a rigid metal plate The brush unit of the second embodiment functions, in the operation of a suction cleaner agitator, exactly as the first embodiment, the brush elements being sufficiently long to sweep bare floors.

I claim:

1. A rotary agitator for suction cleaners com prising a rotatable body formed with a brush seat and a removable brush unit positioned in said seat and comprising a rigid back and a plurality of axially spaced brush elements each of which includes a surface-contacting brush and a resilient flexible mounting means positioned between said brush and said back, said mounting means being unsupported on their sides to provide free flexibility for said brush.

2. A removable floor-contacting brush unit for suction cleaner rotary agitators comprising an group of flexible bristles mounted elongated rigid back, a resilient transversely bendable support carried by said back and including spaced flexible webs, and spaced tufts of floor-contacting brush bristles mounted on said support.

3. A floor-contacting brush unit for suction cleaner rotary agitators comprising an elongated rigid back, a resilient bendable support carried by said back comprising an elongated base with spaced Webs extended therefrom and enlargedtuft seats at the ends of said webs, and spaced floor-contacting brush tufts each comprising a in said tuft seats.

or liner cemented or vulcanized to the underside of the base 35 of the support. This back is indicated by the reference character 46 and is removably secured to the central portion of the brush seat45 by means of removable screws 41,

one of which is illustrated in Figure 8, and which may be suitably spaced along its length.

In this second embodiment the metal plate 46 has suflicient strength and rigidity to maintainelement and a flexible brush element, said brush.

element being sufficiently long to contact and sweep an uncovered floor surface below said cleaner and sufficiently flexible to deflect upon contact with a surface covering lifted by the suction in said nozzle to enable said covering to be lifted into contact with said rigid beater element.

6. In a suction cleaner, a nozzle, a rotary agitator in saidnozzle including a rigid beater element and a flexible brush' element, the radial extension of said brush element being greater than the radial extension of said beater element, said brush element having an extension suflficient to cause it to contact -bare uncovered floors, and suction-creating means connected to said nozzle of suflicient strength to lift a surface covering undergoing cleaning within the orbit described by said brush elementand into contact with'said beater element upon the rotation of said agitator.

'7. A brush tuft support for a suction cleaner agitator comprising an elongated base and spaced aligned web-like extensions at one side of said base formed with enlarged tuft seats at their outer ends, said base and extensions being of rubber. s

8. In a suction cleaner, a body including a nozzle having lips, a rotary agitator in said nozzle including a rigid. beater element which in roindividually tation describes an orbit substantially tangent to the plane of the nozzle lips and a deflectably mounted brush element which in rotation describes an orbit which extends through the plane of the nozzle lips to the plane of the cleanersupporting surface to sweep base floors.

9. In a. suction cleaner, a body, means to movably support said body, rotary agitating means on said body mounted for. rotation about a fixed axis and including flexible elements extended into the plane of surface contact of said supporting means and rigid elements having a .substantially lesser extension.

10. In a suction cleaner, a body including a nozzle having lips defining the plane of the nozzle mouth, supporting means for said body extended therefrom into a contacting plane in which said means rest upon asupporting floor,

a rotary agitator carried by said body, means mounting said agitator for rotation about a fixed axis, said agitator including rigid beater elements extended into the plane of the nozzle mouth and flexible brush elements extended through the plane of said nozzle mouth and to saidcontacting plane.

11. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner comprising a cylindrical body, supporting means extended from the ends of said body to mount it for rotation without gyration about a certain axis, rigid surface-beating means carried by said cylindrical body extended radially into a definite orbit relative to said axis, and flexible brush means including a rigid back fixedly carried by said body and rotatable therewith and flexible bristles extended radially through the orbit of the axis of rotation than perpendicular thereto,

said elements having a radial extension suflicient to extend to the plane of an uncovered supporting surface and a flexibility suflicient to enable them to be flexed by pressure exerted by contact with a suction-lifted surface covering below the nozzle undergoing cleaning to a positicn above the plane of the nozzle lips, and means to rotate'said agitator.-

15. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner comprising a series of helically arranged spaced individual brush elements, each element includ ing a flexible surface-contacting element and a flexible supporting means therefor having a maximum resistance to bending in a plane parallel to the axis of rotation and a minimum resistance to bending in a plane at right angles to said first plane, whereby each brush element is adapted to be individually and independently said rigid beating means into their own orbit at a greater radial distance from the said axis, the radial difference between the two orbits being sufficient to permit said brush bristles to make cleaning contact with a supporting surface with said rigid beating means spaced thereabove when said supporting means are positioned in a suction cleaner.

12. In a rotary agitator for a suction cleaner, a body formed with a brush seat having side walls, a brush, and a resilient flexible brushsupporting element deflectably mounting said brush on said body and positioned in said seat between and spaced from said walls, said element being laterally deflectible and formed with resilient parts opposite said walls.

' 13. In a suction cleaner, a nozzle, suctioncreating means connected to said nozzle, a rotary agitator in said nozzle comprising a series of spaced brush elements arranged in helical alignment and including flexible resilient support means having'greater resistance to bending parallel to the axis of rotation than perpendicular thereto, a rigid beater element on said agitator, said brush elements having a greater radial extension than said beater element and being sufliciently long to contact and sweeep an uncovered surface below said cleaner and being sufficiently flexible to deflect upon contact with a surface covering lifted by the suction in said nozzle to enable said covering to be lifted into contact with said rigid beater element, and means to rotate said agitator.

14. In a sL'ction cleaner, a nozzle having spaced lips defining a mouth, suction-creating means connected to said nozzle, a rotary agitator in said nozzle comprising a series of spaced brush elements arranged in helical alignment and including flexible resilient supportmeansv having greater resistance to bending parallel to deflected upon contact with a surface covering and with a minimum of displacement parallel to I the axis of rotation. Y

16. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner comprising a rotatable body, a series of spaced helically arranged brush tufts and a separate flexible supporting web supporting each tuft on said body, said webhaving a minimum resistance to bending in a plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation and a. maximum resistance to bending in a plane at right angles to the first-mentioned plane. I a

17. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner comprising a rotatable body, a series of spaced helically arranged brush tufts, and a' separate flexible supporting element individually supportting each tuft on said body for angular movement relative thereto, each of said supporting elements comprising a flat rubber web lying in a plane parallel to the axis of agitator rotation.

18. In a suction cleaner, a nozzle having lips, non-adjustable means having their lowermost points in a plane movably supporting said lips above a supporting surface, suction-creating means of suflicient strength to lift a surface covering undergoing cleaning into contact with said lips, a rotary agitator in said nozzle including rigid beating elements having a fixed orbit of rotation substantially tangent to the plane of said lips and flexible brushing elements having a with said lips that portion of a surface covering underlying said nozzle, an agitator in said nozzle including a rigid beating element rotatable about a fixed axis extending approximately to the plane of the nozzle lips and a flexible brush element rotatable about a flxed axis extended below that plane sufliclently to contact an uncovered supporting floor, and means to actuate said beating and brushing elements. I

20. In a suction cleaner, a body, means to movably support said body, rotaryagitating means on said body mounted for rotation about a fixd axis and including flexible elements extended into the plane of surface contact of said sup-' porting means and rigid elements having a substantially lesser extension, characterized in that said flexible elements are sufficiently flexible to flex upon contact with a lifted surface covering undergoing cleaning to permit that covering to contact said rigid elements.

21. In a suction cleaner, a body including a nozzle having lips defining the plane of the nozzle mouth, supporting means for said body extended therefrom into a contacting plane in which said means are adapted to contact a supporting floor, a rotary agitator carried by said body, means mounting said agitator for rotation about a fixed axis, said agitator including rigid beater elements extended into the plane of the nozzle mouth and flexible brush elements extended through the plane of said nozzle mouth and to said contacting plane.

22. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner comprising a cylindrical body, supporting means extended from the ends of said body to mount it for rotation without gyration about a certain axis, rigid surface-beating means carried by said cylindrical body extended radially into a definite orbit relative to said axis, and flexible brush means including a rigid back fixedly carried by said body and rotatable therewith and flexible bristles extended radially from said back through the orbit of said rigid beating means into their own orbit at a greater radial distance from the said axis, the radial difference between the two orbits being sufficient to permit said brush bristles to make cleaning contact with a supporting surface with said rigid beating means spaced thereabove when said supporting means are positioned in a suction cleaner, and said bristles being sufliciently flexible that a suction-lifted surface covering is not held thereby outside the orbit of said surface-beating means.

23. In a suction cleaner, a nozzle having lips,

supporting means movably supporting said lips above the plane of an uncovered surface, a rotary agitator positioned in said nozzle and including a rigid heating element and a flexible brushing element, said beating element extending radially into an orbit having its lowermost point above said uncovered surface, said flexible brushing element extending radially into an orbit intersecting said uncovered surface, means to rotate said agitator, suction-creating means connected to said nozzle adapted to lift a surface covering upwardly to said nozzle and into the orbit of said rigid beating element with the cleaner supported thereon, said brushing element being sufiiciently flexible that in the rotation of the agitator the force exerted thereby upon a lifted surface covering is insufiicient to hold the covering below the orbit of said beating element.

24. In a suction cleaner, a body including a nozzle having lips, wheels movably supporting said body with said lips positioned at one height abovea bare-supporting surface and at a lesser height above a supporting surface covering,a rotary agitator in said nozzle includingarigid beater element and a flexible brush element, said beater element extended radially from the axis of rotation of said agitator into an orbit the lowermost point of which is above an unlifted supporting surface covering, said flexible beater element extended radially from the axis of rotation of said agitator into an orbit intersecting a bare sup-porting surface, means to rotate said agitator, and suctioncreating means connected to said nozzle of suflicient power to lift a surface covering supporting said cleaner upwardly against the resisting force of said flexible brush element in agitator rotation and into the orbit of said rigid beater element.

HOWARD EARL HOOVER. 

